FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

On this page, you will find answers to frequently asked questions regarding application and admission.

Entry requirements

Previous education/Bachelor’s degree

English language proficiency

Unfortunately, you cannot apply directly for a Master’s degree programme. You will have to apply for a pre-master’s programme first (if available). After finishing the one-year pre-master’s programme, you will be automatically admitted to the related Master’s degree specialisation.

If your educational background is not the most appropriate preparation for the Master of your choice, you may consider applying for a pre-master’s programme first (if available). After finishing the one-year pre-master’s programme, you will be automatically admitted to the related Master’s degree specialisation.

If you hold an academic (not an applied/HBO) bachelor degree in social sciences or humanities, you can apply for the master Media Studies. Depending on your exact curriculum the Admissions Committee will decide if you could be admitted directly to the master or would need to follow the premaster trajectory first.

If you meet all programme requirements except sufficient background in social scientific research methods you may be admitted to the programme on condition that you follow a preparatory intensive methods course offered by our department shortly before the start of the academic year (this course is free of charge).

Your eligibility can only be determined after you have submitted an application together with the required documents. Prior assessments would be merely hypothetical. For this reason, we encourage you to apply officially for admission. Your application will then be assessed by the programme’s admissions committee. Of course, you can also check the detailed admission criteria on the programme’s website.

No, it is not possible to transfer grades or credits obtained at another university

Yes, you can apply and we will consider your application. However, any offer made to you will be conditional until you meet all of the entry requirements. If admitted, you will get permission to submit your diploma (or graduation statement) after the application deadline, but ultimately 10 August.

Yes, you can apply and we will consider your application. However, any offer made to you will be conditional until you meet all of the entry requirements. Please plan your test as soon as possible. Bear in mind that it will take several weeks before you receive an official copy of your test results. If you are admitted, we do need the test report ultimately 10 August. Without official proof of your English language proficiency at the required level, we cannot register you as a student for the programme!

If you have not yet taken any English test, we recommend that you take TOEFL -iBT or IELTS academic.

Check the programme’s entry requirements to see which scores you need to obtain in the language test. A Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English (CAE - grade B or A) or a Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) will also be accepted.

Please note:

Test results of the First Certificate in English (FCE) and the TOEIC-test are not accepted!

Please plan your test as soon as possible. Bear in mind that it will take several weeks before you receive an official copy of your test results.

If you are admitted, we need to receive the test report before 10 August. Without official proof of your English language proficiency at the required level, we cannot register you as a student for the programme!

You are free to choose the subject of your paper, but an essay on a topic or issue in the field of Media Studies is preferred.

The essay should demonstrate your academic writing and analytical skills. It could be your bachelor thesis, a research paper or a course paper written during your bachelor study (or an extensive summary thereof if it was not in English).

The minimum length is 2,000 words (approximately 5 pages).

The paper must be written in English.

It is also possible to write an essay specifically for your application: in that case it should still be academic in nature, drawing on relevant academic sources.

Don’t forget to include a reference list.

English tests must be less than two years old at the time of application.

No, we do not. Therefore, you need to submit a digital copy of your English language test report.

For native speakers and graduates of recognised academic programmes taught entirely in English, the obligation to take a language test may be dropped after considering their academic performance.

In the Admission Portal you need to upload an official document stating the language of instruction of your Bachelor’s degree programme.

Submitting your application

Studielink and EUR Admission Portal

Deadlines and response times

Application documents

Application status

Studielink is the Dutch national registration system for higher education programmes. We can only register you as a student at our university if you enrol through this system.Subsequently, you need to finalise your application in the Admission Portal of Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR).

Please note: once you have enrolled in Studielink, you will receive an email with your login details for the EUR Admission Portal.

In the EUR Admission Portal you need to answer some additional questions and upload the required documents.After checking your entries, you need to submit your application. Please note: only applications with the status ‘submitted’ will be processed.

We currently request no handling fee for the applications.

Please contact our ICT service desk at servicedesk@ict.eur.nl and ask them to provide your login details as soon as possible. Please be aware that automatically generated emails may end up in your spam or junk folder. Therefore, please check these folders!

Go to the login page of the Portal and click on ‘forgot username’ and/or ‘forgot password’ (upper right corner of the screen). Subsequently, follow the instructions. If that does not work, please contact Erasmus Student Service Centre.

Please contact the programme’s admission officer and ask for assistance.

You can start working in the Portal, save your entries and use your login information to return to the Portal later. We will only start processing your application after you have submitted it in the Portal, by clicking on the ‘submit’ button at the bottom of the last page of the questionnaire. Thus, the status of your application will change to ‘submitted’. If that does not work, please contact the programme’s admission officer and ask for assistance.

In that case, please add a document stating your planned test date and indicate whether you will take an IELTS or a TOEFL test.

As of October you can apply for the academic year starting in September of the following year.

That is not possible. All our programmes start only once a year, on 1 September.

There are several deadlines and so-called ‘rounds’ for each programme. Check the programme’s website for the exact dates.

Please note: candidates from outside the European Economic Area (non-EEA), are required to apply earlier than EEA-candidates. This is to ensure that non-EEA candidates will have sufficient time left to apply for a visa if they are admitted to the programme.

Applications submitted before a given deadline, will be assessed within 8 weeks after this date. Of course, we always try to let you know the outcome as soon as possible. Eight weeks after the deadline is the ultimate response date.

This is to ensure that non-EEA candidates will have sufficient time left to apply for a visa if they are admitted to the programme.

Yes, you do. However, you will improve your chances if you apply in the first or second round.

Please note: candidates from outside the European Economic Area (non-EEA), are required to apply earlier than EEA-candidates. This is to ensure that non-EEA candidates will have sufficient time left to apply for a visa if they are admitted to the programme.

Yes, you can apply and we will consider your application. However, if you receive an offer, it will be conditional until you meet all of the entry requirements. If admitted, you will be granted permission to submit your diploma (or graduation statement) after the last application deadline, but ultimately 10 August.

Some universities do not issue diplomas until late summer or even early autumn - even if technically you have already graduated. If this applies to your university, please ask them to issue an official graduation statement, confirming you have indeed met all requirements needed for graduation. This document should be submitted to Master Admission (see programme’s website) no later than 10 August. It should be a certified document, i.e. it should carry the university’s stamp, signature and a date.

Yes, if you cannot submit your language test report before the application deadline, we will consider your application anyhow. However, any offer made to you will be conditional until you meet all of the entry requirements. Please plan your test as soon as possible.

Bear in mind that it will take several weeks before you receive an official copy of your test results.

If you are admitted, we do need the test report ultimately 10 August. Without official proof of your English language proficiency at the required level, we cannot register you as a student for the programme!

A certified copy is a copy of a filed document, legal or other, which contains a seal that establishes the document is genuine. Thus, it should have a stamp and signature stating that it is a true copy. Only an officially authorised person can certify a document (for example a notary or a university official).

You are free to choose the subject of the essay. You may send a paper you have written during your Bachelor’s degree programme. The purpose is to give the programme’s selection committee an impression of your academic writing and analytical skills.

The minimum length is 2,000 words (approximately 5 pages). The paper must be written in English. Do not forget to include a reference list.

A sworn translator can provide an official translation. Nowadays, most universities provide separate translations or bi-lingual degree certificates and transcripts of records. These documents are regarded as official translations as well.

Please note: you must send a copy of the documents in the original language along with the translation.

Only if you apply for our Research Master, you are required to submit two reference letters.For all other programmes these documents are not mandatory. However, you may include additional documents if you believe this will contribute to your profile.

The purpose of the essay is to enable the programme’s admission committee to quickly assess your academic writing and analytical skills. Hence, the request to submit an essay of approximately 5 pages. Therefore, please always upload a short essay. You can submit an essay you have written during your previous studies.

In addition, you may upload your thesis under ‘additional documents’.

If you are applying for an English language programme, both your cv and your motivation letter should be written in English. The same goes for the required essay.

GPA stands for Grade Point Average. This average is based on the weighted average of all grades from your bachelor programme.

In many countries official academic transcripts contain a GPA (Grade Point Average) - one calculated per semester, and one calculated over the entire study programme. In some cases a GPA will only be calculated once the programme has been completed.

Within 8 weeks after the deadline* we will let you know by email whether or not you have been accepted to the programme.

*see schedule with deadlines and response times on the programme’s website

Every (conditional) admission offer is only valid for the coming academic year. If you are unable to join the programme, you will have to apply again next year.

General questions and practical matters

You can find information about the tuition fee here. More details can be obtained via the ESSC. The fee has to be paid before the first of September every year.

Yes, we do. All students to whom this applies, will automatically receive further information from our International Officer.

You can find out more about housing on this page. All international students who are invited to join the programme, will receive a detailed email from our International Officer with information about housing.

You need the card to participate in exams, and borrow books in the library. You will only receive it once you have finished your registration (e.g. payment of tuition fees) and if you have already filled out a Dutch address in Studielink. If you have not yet changed the address in your home country to your Dutch address, the faculty will let you know where you can pick up your student card.

It is advisable to arrive in Rotterdam well in time for the first lectures. Introductions such as ESN and the EUReka week are planned for mid-August and are a nice way to get settled before classes start.

In Rotterdam there are many places you can turn to for help and assistance. Please look here for more information. Please note that for medical assistance, the usual practice in the Netherlands is for a patient to have an initial consultation with a general practitioner (Dutch: huisarts), before making an appointment with a specialist in hospital. Erasmus University Rotterdam has made arrangements with several general practitioners. For information, click here.